Chapter 113: Compensation

Chapter 113: Compensation

The Special Operations Bureau sending people over was something Yu Sheng had already anticipated. Given that Little Red Riding Hood had reported the appearance of Dim Angel cultists in the museum, the bureau would definitely prioritize contacting the “key involved party” to verify the intelligence. The most likely people to be sent were Li Lin and Xu Jiali, with whom he had some level of familiarity.

What he did not expect was that more people came than just the two of them. The captain of Second Team, Song Cheng, had also arrived.

In the living room of Wutong Road 66, Yu Sheng observed the man with some curiosity. The Second Operations Team captain looked sturdy and experienced, the kind of reliable veteran one would instinctively trust. He was a middle-aged man with short black hair and slightly dark skin. A faint scar could be seen under his neck. He wore a plain black jacket over a white shirt. The outlines of his arm muscles were faintly visible beneath the jacket. Although not as exaggerated in build as Xu Jiali, it was obvious he was a frontline combat operative.

With a superior present, Li Lin and Xu Jiali, who had come along, were sitting on the sofa looking somewhat restrained.

At the same time, Song Cheng was also curiously observing this place.

It was his first time entering this hidden Other Domain, Wutong Road 66, currently one of the most mysterious places in the Boundary Zone.

His impression was that it looked like an ordinary residential house. Everything appeared normal, fully furnished with appliances and home items, all of them fitting neatly into the current “social context” of the Boundary Zone. Not too new, not too old, just the kind of mid-level household one would expect.

This was actually inconsistent with his experience.

Because the Boundary Zone did have Other Domains resembling residences. He was familiar with places like the Dark Cabin, Dormitory 404, and the elusive “Apartment 6” at the edge of the city. These domains all resembled normal housing at first glance, often relaxing newcomers into thinking they had entered a harmless empty building. But in reality, such domains always contained some obvious element of incongruity with reality. Usually it was an object that did not match the era, or something placed in the wrong context.

For example, a brass oil lamp next to an electric light, a drip irrigation device placed on a windowsill, or a window embedded into the floor. It felt like non-human things were desperately trying to imitate human living spaces, succeeding in most aspects but revealing their misunderstanding of human tools in the details.

But here there was nothing like that. At least within visible range, everything in Wutong Road 66 matched Song Cheng’s human common sense.

Of course, that was ignoring the two dolls sitting on the coffee table watching television, and the fox carefully grooming her tail nearby.

At that moment, Yu Sheng broke the slightly awkward silence in the living room.

“Um, tea?”

“No need to trouble yourself, water is fine,” Song Cheng replied quickly with a polite smile. He first apologized to Yu Sheng. “Sorry for the sudden visit. It’s mainly because this involves the Dim Angel. Some intelligence requires my on-site authorization before being disclosed to third parties.”

Yu Sheng waved his hand. “It’s fine. I was actually curious what kind of person the ‘captain’ Li Lin always mentions is. Nice to meet you.”

The two Irenes sitting on the coffee table watching TV turned toward the conversation.

“Human social interaction is so troublesome,” they complained in unison.

Identical voices, making it sound like an echo.

“I’ve been meaning to ask,” Song Cheng finally could not hold back and pointed at Irene. “The report said there was only one…”

Li Lin and Xu Jiali also looked toward Yu Sheng, confused.

When Yu Sheng had opened the door to let them in, they had seen two Irenes in the living room and briefly thought they were hallucinating.

“A small incident. The number increased,” Yu Sheng said awkwardly, rubbing his hands. “Just treat it as a result of my research with Irene.”

Li Lin looked a little dazed and blurted out, almost unconsciously, “So… will there be more in the future?”

Yu Sheng thought for a moment and nodded seriously. “Possibly.”

Li Lin froze, then stopped asking. He could tell Yu Sheng did not really want to explain the underlying mechanism.

Song Cheng felt something was off about this exchange, as if the conversation itself had drifted into something absurdly natural.

But he did not forget the main purpose of his visit.

“I came for two things. First, to verify the situation reported by Little Red Riding Hood regarding Dim Angel cultists appearing in the museum domain. Second, to deliver something.”

He signaled Xu Jiali, who opened a briefcase and placed a document folder on the coffee table.

“This is the full legal registration file and certification documents for your organization ‘Travel Agency’. You can review it. If anything is unclear, feel free to ask me.”

The legal registration documents of “Travel Agency” as an official organization.

Yu Sheng almost forgot about this. His eyes lit up immediately as he took the folder. The two Irenes on the coffee table also leaned over at once, while the other continued watching TV.

First was a folded registration certificate with a black cover. On it were the circular emblem of the Boundary Council and the diamond emblem of the Special Operations Bureau printed in deep red. Inside were the basic registration details of “Travel Agency”, including registration location, time, business scope, and name. The large “Travel Agency” text in the center gave Yu Sheng a strong sense of solidity.

Then came duplicate certificates and two black devices resembling USB drives.

“These two are your digital data tokens,” Song Cheng explained. “They also contain a special version of the Border Communication program. Plug them into any internet-connected computer, and that computer will temporarily gain access to the Special Operations Bureau information platform, similar to your modified phone. They include a shared ‘Travel Agency’ account that cannot be changed or deleted. The devices have built-in security measures, so data leakage or tampering is not a concern. Once unplugged, access logs are automatically cleared. If severely damaged, they will automatically alert the bureau and transmit the last recorded coordinates before destruction.”

“…That’s impressive,” Yu Sheng said, studying the unremarkable devices.

He did not understand technical details, but instinctively felt this was not ordinary electronics. If anything, it felt like some kind of black technology.

“The Special Operations Bureau’s technology is generally reliable,” Song Cheng said with a faint smile. “In extreme situations, these can also function as disposable distress devices.”

Yu Sheng asked curiously, “So if one of these breaks inside my house, it can still send coordinates back?”

Song Cheng’s smile froze for a moment, then recovered. “So I said generally reliable…”

Yu Sheng chuckled and put the items away. Then he thought for a moment and waved over Hu Li, handing her one of the data tokens.

“Put this in your tail as a backup.”

Hu Li nodded and stuffed the device into her tail, then wandered off to continue grooming it.

“Don’t forget to sweep up after you’re done grooming,” Yu Sheng reminded her. “Don’t leave fur everywhere.”

“Okay!”

Song Cheng’s smile stiffened again. After a moment, he asked, “…Where did she put it?”

“I guessed your report didn’t include that detail,” Yu Sheng said casually. “Hu Li has all kinds of strange abilities. You’ll learn more later. But let’s talk about the museum incident first.”

“We’ve already launched an arrest operation. We are currently using technical means to screen active individuals in the southern district. All outbound routes from the Boundary Zone have been monitored. If those two cultists are still in the city, it is only a matter of time before they are caught,” Song Cheng said. “The intelligence you provided is extremely valuable. Honestly, it is rare even for us to receive such detailed suspect information at the early stage of an incident.”

Xu Jiali added, “Dim Angel cultists are notoriously elusive and rarely leave witnesses alive. They are usually very difficult to track. The field agents responsible for this case said it feels like a once-in-eight-lifetimes easy job.”

“That makes sense. They didn’t leave any witnesses this time either,” Yu Sheng said casually. “The dead are talking.”

Song Cheng’s expression shifted slightly. Then he looked at Yu Sheng very seriously.

“That is exactly what I wanted to discuss. Regarding your ability to communicate with the deceased, and the overall capabilities demonstrated by ‘Travel Agency’, the bureau hopes to have more cooperation in the future.”

As he spoke, he took out a thick envelope from his bag and placed it on the coffee table.

Yu Sheng paused, then quickly guessed what it was.

He opened it and looked inside, slightly surprised. “Bonus? Reporting reward? Quite a lot.”

“This is compensation for assisting in the capture of Dim Angel cultists,” Song Cheng said seriously. “Even though the suspects have not yet been captured, your assistance already far exceeds that of a typical informant. All cooperation with the bureau is remunerated accordingly. As a newly registered spirit investigator, you may not be familiar with this. In cases involving highly dangerous targets like Dim Angel cultists, the bureau’s budget is always generous.”

Yu Sheng was not really listening to the explanation. His mind was already on one thing.

Irene’s new television was finally covered.

And Hu Li’s chicken legs.

And all his other “plans”.

This kind of income was much faster than writing books.